I Will Surprise You Sometime, I'll Come Around
by Dancing Fireworks
Summary: Five years time, I might not know you. Five years time, we might not speak. Five years time, we might not get along. Five years time, you might just prove me wrong. George Weasley/Katie Bell.
1. Young Love

**I WILL SURPRISE YOU SOME TIME (I'LL COME AROUND)**

I) Young Love

_If I only knew your name I'd go from door to door_

_Tell me, have you seen the boy I met just once before?_

_Young Love (Mystery Jets & Laura Marling)  
_

To be honest, Katie couldn't recall when or how exactly she had started to notice him, to single him out of the many boys in the crowd.

First day of school, she was absolutely terrified to enter this new exciting world she only knew by reading Hogwarts, a History. She had heard many wonderful things about it from her parents, they had told her to wait until she turned 11 to get her letter. Wait, she definitely did. She was, and still is, eager to learn everything about magic. If there was anything anyone could say about her, it was that she's a hard worker. She's aware that she's not the most intelligent person (really, that title should go to Hermione Granger… that girl is mental) but she's willing to make up for it by working hard. During her years at Hogwarts, she often wondered why she wasn't Sorted into Hufflepuff.

Second day quickly went by, then a week, then two, and then another… she had grown to be familiar with her surroundings and her friends. What she had not become accustomed to was these… twins. They were loud, they played pranks all the time, they were obnoxious and she hated them. The only good thing was that she knew they weren't in the same year as her, so she didn't have to endure the constant fear of being picked on next. You could never be too careful around those two. Now that she thought about it, she wouldn't normally pay these _boys_ any mind, but they were just really… red. What she meant by that was their hair, you could easily spot them coming from miles away. Back then, all she wanted was to go through her 7 years at Hogwarts with as little drama as possible. Oh, how the times have changed her in the best (and worst) possible way. How fate has graciously introduced her to the ones who had contributed a lot to her personal growth. How she has slowly, but surely and steadily fallen in love with him.

The earliest memory of when she actually started to tell them apart was during a Quidditch match in her 1st year. They were both already playing as Beaters for the Gryffindor Quidditch team at the time. That particular match (she couldn't even remember which House they were against) was so violent and drawn out, she could tell all players were getting exhausted. Then, out of nowhere, there was this voice crying out, "Look out!"

She watched in horror as a Bludger flew with high speed towards her. She closed her eyes and the next thing she felt was the swishing sound next to her ears and the rough pad of a club grazing her cheek.

She opened her eyes and there he was, bending down from his broomstick and asking her, "You alright?"

To which she replied shakily, "Yes."

He nodded to her, then he flew rapidly out of sight. She asked her friend (again, forgot who was with her at the time) which twin he was, and she was told he was George Weasley. She made a mental note so she could separate the two: George is the nice one.

She saw them the next day and she still couldn't tell them apart.


	2. Make It Mine

Author's note: I never got to properly introduce myself in the last chapter, oops. I used to write this fic titled The Last Beautiful Girl but I never finished it - not only did I run out of ideas, I was also extremely unhappy with it all, so I deleted it. It's gotten pretty good reviews too, which I'm thankful for! This story is more organized (I'd like to think so) and I'm happy to say that I currently have a lot of ideas for this fic. I know where this is going. :) It's still about George Weasley and Katie Bell, of course.

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, I wouldn't be sitting here writing this. All properties belong to JK Rowling.

II. Make It Mine

_And timing's everything _

_and this time there's plenty _

_I am balancing _

_Careful and steady _

_And reveling in energy that everyone's emitting _

_[…]_

_I'm gonna make it mine _

_That's why, I will show it _

_I'm gonna make it all mine_

_- Make It Mine (Jason Mraz)_

Due to her being an only child, not many people knew that she was passionate about Quidditch. She had no siblings to talk to or even to annoy a little bit, which often made her feel lonely. Both her parents were busy, so she immersed herself in her books and Quidditch to pass the time. Her father had always encouraged these passions of hers, he even took her up on her request to play Quidditch with her from time to time, switching positions as Chaser and Keeper. They had even convinced her mother to play once as Keeper, when Katie was trying out to be a Beater (she never liked it, she kept feeling nervous about hitting either of her parents).

That passion never wavered during her years at Hogwarts. She wanted to be part of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, to earn points for her House and also to actually measure her abilities and to be _out there_, feeling the thrill of being swept in the real thing. When it was announced that the tryouts were to be held one weekend during her second year, she was determined to give it a try. She waited until the Common Room became relatively empty before standing in front of the giant board where a sheet of paper was pinned for anyone who wanted to sign up. She stood there for what felt like an eternity before she wrote down her name. Satisfied, she all but ran upstairs to her dormitories before she changed her mind.

"_Eh? Why am I the only girl in our year to try out for this team?" _She was looking around the pitch and only recognized some boys from her year and the rest were people from the years above her. She was starting to become nervous and a little close to tears (yes, her stomach hurt that much, thank you). Someone was calling out her name and she looked around to see where the source came from. It was her best friend Leanne, sitting in the audience with her other friend Emily.

"We're here to support you! Good luck!"

She returned the wave and did a thumbs up to thank them. It was then that the voices around her became quieter as the Captain of the team called for their attention.

"Good morning everyone, I'm Oliver Wood and I'm Captain of this team, as well as Keeper," said a tall, burly boy with chestnut hair. Katie had never quite seen anybody like him. He was smiling energetically as he said introduced himself and everyone else on the team (including the Weasley twins, who appeared to not be listening to a word he said and instead were looking around at all the new faces with identical mischievous grins). His fists were pumped with every word he said and he had this rather maniacal glint to his eyes. Now she wondered if _they _had been Sorted into the right House. They could easily be in Slytherin.

So, this Wood told them to wait until their names were called. It was during this waiting that she noticed 2 of the Chasers were girls. She suddenly felt a surge of pride and wanted so bad to join them. How great would that be to have 3 girls on the team?

"Hey you, what year are you in?"

She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she didn't realize at first this was directed to her. She looked up and saw a blonde boy grinning at her. She quickly and timidly answered without so much as looking at him for more than 5 seconds. "Look here, there's a _girl _trying out for Quidditch!" he then pointed at her as he signaled his friends to come over.

Katie was not one to blush easily, but right then and there, she did. _"Oh no," _she was definitely the attention of her surroundings now, _"couldn't he find someone else to bully?"_

But to her relief, he didn't bully her. He was merely pointing out how weird it was, having to compete for a position with a girl. She gritted her teeth. _"It's not _that _weird, honestly." _She huffed and looked pointedly at the tryouts.

When her time came, she flew up to join the team. The girls were smiling encouragingly at her, Oliver Wood merely looked at her once before barking instructions at the twins, to which they responded with an almighty, "Aye, aye, Captain!" which drew some giggles.

She managed to hold her own against the girls (she later found out her names were Angelina and Alicia, both in 3rd year) and managed to dodge most of the hits thrown by the twins (Fred and George, also in 3rd year), except two times where the Bludger successfully hit her broomstick, making her off balance for a bit.

When she was done, she received a few baffled stares from the same boys who had thought it was weird for her to be trying out at all. She grinned at them, feeling so proud of herself. It didn't matter whether she got the position or not, the look on their faces alone is worth it.

She passed by Fred (or George) as she went on her way back to join Leanne and Emily and he told her, "Hey, Katie Bell, is it? You were not bad out there."

She had such a huge grin on her face as she thanked him. She found out she was chosen as a Chaser the next week. She felt like winning the Quidditch Cup already, she was giddy beyond belief. She promised herself to always make it her own victory: the fact that she was given a chance to show everyone what she's capable of.

AN: Yes, so the story is developping a little slowly. I think I need to introduce my Katie first, the way I envision her character. At least now they're at that stage when they recognize each other! They're going to mostly bond through Quidditch, naturally. It should be in the next chapter. ;)


	3. Thank You For Being A Friend

**AN: **I think I could've done this a little bit better, but I'm fairly pleased with how things are progressing. A new chapter should be up shortly! I hope you like this one. Reviews make me happy.

III. Thank You For Being A Friend

_  
__  
I'm not ashamed to say  
I hope it always will stay this way_

_- Thank You For Being A Friend (Andrew Gold)_

"Bell!"

The sound startled her so much that she let out a little yelp.

"See, Fred, I told you."

"Indeed. Another interesting fact about our very own Katherine Mary Bell."

She rolled her eyes and turned around to face Fred and George grinning at her. She wondered briefly if they never get tired of flashing the same grin at every single person they meet.

"That's not my full name. What do you want?"

It was her third year at Hogwarts and her life had become a little more like hell, partly thanks to these two. The Gryffindor Quidditch team had become closer, bonding over their mutual passion and the idle, fun chats they had as they questioned Oliver's sanity.

She's glad that she managed to get along with the whole team, it wouldn't be much fun if she didn't. Angelina and Alicia were like the older sisters she never had, they worked well together on the pitch and would sometimes have girl talks amongst all the noise that Fred and George made in the changing room.

Oliver was always wrapped up in concocting game plays and techniques, but he always spared a few minutes for idle chatter. Harry (she still couldn't believe that _Harry Potter _is in her team)… well, Harry always seemed distant. She didn't talk to him much, but he's always been nice. Then of course, there are Fred and George, who were now gasping dramatically at her.

"Miss Bell! I do not condone this hostility."

"Really, where are your manners?"

"George --"

"Honestly! You still can't tell us apart, can you? I'm Fred!"

Katie rolled her eyes again and smiled despite herself. "_George_, I know it's you, alright? And Fred, stop whatever it is you're doing."

Fred, who had his hands behind him, gave her what he must assume was an innocent smile. It only further enhanced his mischievous features. "And what is it am I doing, Katie?"

"Stop doing weird things to my hair." She had put her hair into a neat ponytail today, thinking it would be more practical that way as she was to have a long day ahead of her. She could now feel her hair moving around and she didn't even dare take a look, for fear of what she would see.

"Aww, little Katie is worried about her appearance! You shouldn't worry so much, we've seen you on the field. This can't be any worse than that."

George was now openly sniggering at Fred's words and the outraged look on Katie's face, complete with the bewitched hair. "You little --", she had begun to say, when George interrupted her.

"Go on, Fred, give her the rainbow-coloured ribbons to match with her socks."

"I am not wearing --"

"Yeah, I'll bet _Oliver _will fall all over himself when he sees you like this, Kate."

She was in the middle of a retort and instantly shut her mouth. She felt a hot wave spreading through her cheeks and the twins' sudden scrutiny certainly didn't help matters. After what felt like an eternity, George spoke.

"Well, well. What do we have here?"

"Could it be our very own Katherine Helen Bell --"

"Not my full name."

"—fancies the rogue, strong, manly Oliver Wood?"

"I do not!" Even as she spoke those words, she wanted to dig a hole, curl up and die. The looks they were both throwing at her only made it worse. The denial was too strong and she had yelled a little too loudly.

Alright, so she thought Oliver was cute. So what? It's not like she was going to act on it. She only _sometimes_ liked observing him from afar and the way he grinned widely at each and every one of them after a successful practice made her feel funny inside. But again, it's not like she was going to do anything about it. She just admired him for his determination, that's all. Besides, he's way too old for her. Not like she wanted him to be her _boyfriend_.

She was so lost in her thoughts (which kept contradicting each other) that she didn't notice Fred pointing his wand at her. Next thing she knew, her hair was hanging loose on her shoulders. She looked up to see them putting on their best Cheshire cats expression.

"What?" she said, dreading the answer.

"Oh, nothing," said Fred airily, "best to let you go on about your business, that's all."

"Yes, Bell, we'll let you off this time. See you at practice tomorrow?"

She looked at them suspiciously. "What are you up to?"

They feigned a look of horror. "That hurts, Katherine Anne --"

"Still not my name," she said through gritted teeth.

"— how could we possibly go on living when you have such little faith on us?"

"It breaks our hearts."

"It shatters the soul."

"Alright, stop already," she took a look at her watch and sighed in frustration, "and now I'm late for Potions. Snape is going to kill me."

"Aww, Bell, say that with joy. Every session with Snape is happy hour!" said Fred, who then noticed their other friend Lee Jordan coming into the Common Room. "Alright, chin up, Bell. Later!" he winked at her and went to talk to Lee.

"Right, I'd better go. See you later, George."

She picked up her things and as she stood up, George was smiling at her. She looked at him questioningly, and then he said, "See you later, Miss Wood."

"_George!_ Please don't, please don't tell anybody about this, I will --"

He tapped her lightly on the head with his knuckles and said, "Course not. That's not where the fun part is. I can't promise the same for Fred, though."

He grinned at her again. "Now go, you said you were late. Don't want Gryffindor to lose more points, do you? See you later, yeah?"

As he turned around to join Fred and Lee, Katie stared at his retreating back for a while and whispered, "Thanks, George."

She was 10 minutes late for Potions and Snape… well, while he did not kill her as predicted, he might as well have. He took off 10 points from Gryffindor and he made her do extra work for the next class. Really, whoever said life was boring clearly never had an encounter with either the Weasley twins or Snape.


	4. It Was You

IV. It Was You

_It was you who showed me_

_I got a friend in you_

_I always knew that you'd be_

_Right here for me_

_It Was You (Ashley Ballard)_

If there's one thing her mother had taught her, it was that women should embody the very epitome of grace and quiet elegance, all the while showing a strong state of mind without having to resort to meaningless arguments.

Katie never liked being in an argument and while it bothered her at first for seeming too naïve or even weak (she shuddered at the word) in the eyes of others, she's learned to make peace with it during her years at Hogwarts.

That's why whenever an argument is on the horizon and is (almost always) at the point to escalate into a full-blown fight, she tries to stay out of it. Like that one time when Emily and Leanne were at each other's throats for a silly matter that she couldn't even remember right now, or when Angelina went into a long, angry tirade directed at Fred for being "a complete arse".

It seemed like this time it would've been no different. She would stop two (sometimes more) people from turning into squashed little gnomes and she would make them apologize to each other. All would be well.

Yes, indeed. It's all very well. Except that this time _did _turn out to be different.

It happened on a fine Saturday evening in the middle of March during her third year. She was struggling with her Transfiguration homework along with Emily in the Gryffindor common room.

"I wonder where Leanne is," said Emily abruptly.

She didn't look away from her homework and merely grunted, "Hmmm?"

"Yeah, it's not like her to be out this long without even telling us."

"She said she was going to the library, remember?"

"I know, but still, it isn't safe. There's still that… whatever the thing that's lurking and Petrify-ing the Muggle-borns."

She finally tore her attention away from her homework and focused on her best friend, a faint crease lying on her front. "But --" she started to feel worried now, "Leanne's a Pureblood, so she wouldn't get Petrified, would she?"

"I dunno," said Emily, looking grave, "I'm worried."

"Why the long face, Kate?"

George had come to sit down by their table.

"Oh, hi, George," she smiled briefly, "where's Fred?"

"Just landed himself and Lee a detention with Sprout," he shrugged as if he didn't care about it much, although Katie could clearly see a hint of a smirk across his face. He then nodded to Emily and said, "Hi, Emily. Everything alright?"

Emily nodded and said, "We were just talking about Leanne. She hasn't come back from the library since lunchtime and we're getting quite worried."

George frowned and asked cautiously, "She's a Pureblood, right?"

When Katie and Emily both nodded, he went on, "Then you don't have to worry. She'll be fine. She won't get out of the school grounds anyway, since it's not allowed."

He went quiet, and his expression grew thoughtful as his eyes swept the common room, only to bring them to a halt. Her eyes then followed suit until she saw what he was looking at: Ron and Harry, deeply immersed in a conversation as they exchanged grave looks.

She smiled ruefully and said, "Are you worried about your brother?"

George gave a start, looked at her and shrugged. "I dunno," he finally said, "I just know he and Harry are up to something."

"Well, the rumours said they did get the Philosopher's Stone last year," added Emily.

Just then, the portrait of the Fat Lady was opened roughly. All three looked up to see a furious Leanne, followed by James Barron and Peter Atkins, both looking equally angry.

"--- told me you'd have done your part by now, I can't believe you!"

"Oh, so now it's MY fault? Le, we wouldn't even be here if Atkins didn't get himself a detention!"

"What the bloody hell's your problem, Barron?"

"YOU'RE my problem, that's what!"

They were now drawing themselves to their full heights and glaring daggers at each other. Katie hurriedly made her way towards them, followed by George and Emily.

"What's going on?" she said as soon as she arrived. "Leanne, where were you, we were so worried!"

"Please stop," Leanne was saying, imploring James and Peter not to fight. "Sorry, Kate," she added to Katie, "I was at the library with James and Peter, but --"

Whatever she was about to say was interrupted by the sound of knuckles meeting flesh, followed by Emily's shriek. Everything was a blur: Katie didn't know what to do, Emily and Leanne looked terrified, and George was now trying to separate them.

More hits were being thrown and she was starting to get annoyed. These two were being childish and they were now the attention of the whole common room. Leanne and Emily had retreated far away from the two boys and it was as if she was stuck. She couldn't move. Amidst all this she couldn't help wondering why they didn't use wands.

And then it happened so fast.

A striking blow through the cheek. An incredible, mind-blowing pain. The sharp yet soft feel of the rug as her body slammed against it. More screams, the sound of people rushing to get to her.

Then one voice cut through all the noise, loud and clear: "KATIE!!"

She groaned and forced herself to sit up, wincing as she did so. She saw George take one good look at her, then he rounded on James and Peter, who were still oblivious to what had happened.

"Alright, that's it!" He pushed both boys away from each other, this time for good, with surprising strength. He glared at them for a moment as they regained their breath.

"Say you're sorry to Katie," he said calmly, although the tone of his voice had a certain edge to it. "Apologize to her, right now. NOW!" he yelled again, when they still hadn't moved.

James and Peter hurriedly apologized to her, to which she responded by nodding – and even that was an effort. Next to her, Emily and Leanne were fretting about taking her to the hospital wing.

"Are you alright?"

She hadn't even notice George coming towards her. His voice still contained the same edge from earlier, but it was also softer now.

"Yes," she managed to whisper, and then she said more clearly, "I've never seen you like that."

He shrugged, unwilling to meet her eyes. He then faced Emily and said, "You should take her to see Madam Pomfrey."

She wondered if he was okay.


	5. Clumsy

**NOTE: **Phew, here I am, back on track! Currently working on chapter 6, very happy with what I have so far :) Hope you guys like this one.

V. Clumsy

_You got me tripping, stumbling, flipping, fumbling_

_Clumsy 'cause I'm falling in love_

_Clumsy (Fergie)_

"Look, look! There he is!"

"There goes your knight in shining armour!"

Katie looked up at the sound of her giggly, excited friends and noticed George talking animatedly with his friends as they looked for a place to sit down in the Great Hall. It was lunchtime and students had started pouring into the Great Hall just to dump their frustration after a particularly horrible class by eating as much as they could. That was Katie's plan, anyway, and indeed she was eating like she never ate before, but then her friends decided that _clearly_, embarrassing her in front of everyone was the better plan. She felt her face heating up to an alarming degree. Ever since that incident in the common room, her friends had been teasing her relentlessly about George.

"Leanne, shhh! They could hear you!"

Leanne giggled (annoyingly so, thought Katie) even more and said, "Look who's suddenly shy!" To her credit, she only sniggered for a few minutes until Katie's glare finally made her cough nervously and quiet down.

Emily grinned excitedly at Katie and said, "You have to admit, though. It's weird."

"What is?" said Katie off-handedly as she cut through her baked potato.

"George, of course! Don't you think it's weird that he gets angry like that?"

Katie merely shrugged and said, "We've been over this before, Ems. He was just in a foul mood already, and then when I got hit, it made him angrier. That's all."

Leanne giggled again and said, "Whatever, Katie. He's your knight in shining armour! You're his damsel in distress! He faaaaancies you!"

As Emily and Leanne went on chattering excitedly over "Mrs. George Weasley" (as they now decided to write on every corner of Katie's school books, it's annoying, really), Katie did her best to look down at her food, pretending not to care about them. To be completely honest, she did feel weird after the whole incident. She couldn't seem to be looking at George in the eye nowadays. She would look away abruptly every time they locked eyes for a mere 2 seconds, blushing madly as she did so. It was just too embarrassing.

But what is there to be embarrassed about, really? Now that she thinks about it, what George did was nothing out of the ordinary. He was merely saving her from accidentally getting beaten up to a pulp, just like he… _That's it!_ Katie snapped out of her thoughts briefly to take a part of the apple pie in front of her, and resumed her musings. _He's just looking out for me, since I'm a Chaser and he's a Beater, and his job is to look out for each and every one of us in the team! He's so used of doing it that he even does it outside of the field!_

Pleased with her deduction, she didn't even flinch when Emily teased her later on, saying she needs to stop daydreaming about George and that it was time to get things ready for Herbology. She was about to retort again when Oliver Wood passed by with his friends and nodded at her, smiling slightly.

Once again, she felt herself blush. She smiled back at him (or was it more like a grimace?) and silently cursed herself for looking like a constipated idiot. What she couldn't understand is that how this type of embarrassment could be felt twice, for two different boys. Luckily for her, Emily and Leanne were now talking about this girl in Slytherin who had gotten the highest grade out of everyone in her year in this week's Charms test.

Probably not so lucky, though, she was so busy gathering her things (and her growing, confused feelings) that she didn't notice a boy staring pensively at her from afar, whose shoulder was now being shaken by his other friend.

"Mate, you alright? What are you looking at?"

George still stared at the spot where Katie and her friends sat just a while ago, before they went off to continue their activities. It's been weird, lately. _He's _been the weird one, to be completely honest. He shook his head quickly and then tried to convince himself that nothing is weird. He then smirked as he replayed the scene he just saw: Kate was blushing so hard. _This is good_, he thought again, _I should tell Fred about this next time_. She fancies the bloke and she's being so obvious about it. It's so much fun taking the mickey out of her.

"Forge?"

"Yeah!" Fred's voice jolted him out of his reverie and he turned his twin, definitively taking his eyes away from Katie's spot. "You were saying?"

"What're you daydreaming about? You kept staring in space… _who _exactly were you looking at?"

Fred's grin matched his as he answered nonchalantly, "Angelina Johnson."

Fred's grin faded for a split second before coming back full force as he attempted to sound casual, "Really? Why would you – "

George laughed as he bumped his fist on his twin's arm and said, "Just joking, Gred. Don't worry, she's all yours!"

Lee interjected, "Yeah, we know you think she's pretty, don't you, Fred?"

Fred didn't look phased at all and merely said, "She's alright, but the real problem here is my dear brother George, who managed to turn the table on me but not quite. You still haven't answered the question, who were you staring at oh so intently?"

George stopped laughing and cursed Fred silently as the latter batted his eyelashes – _I know that look_, thought George, _it's that look we use on Mum all the time._

"Nothing," he shrugged as he smirked at his friends, "I saw an exchange that can be used for our, ah – how should I put this? Future interactions with a certain Chaser that we both know, Fred."

Fred and Lee grinned and as they walked back to their respective classes (Lee had History of Magic, while they had Arithmancy), George recounted what he saw with Katie and Oliver. As they both chuckled over the prospect of teasing Katie on her crush, George couldn't help feeling uneasy – a feeling that he managed to ignore until now, but kept surfacing whenever he thinks or talks about her. It feels like trying to swat an irritating fly.


	6. Fresh Feeling

**NOTE: **This chapter is set in Katie's fourth year and George's fifth year, when Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup. I wanted to make it clear that I'm going to dabble, to change POV from Katie to George from time to time (though it is mostly going to be from Katie's POV). I hope you like this one!

VI. Fresh Feeling

_You don't have a clue,_

_what it is like_

_to be next to you._

_I'm here to tell you,_

_that it is good,_

_that it is true._

_Fresh Feeling (Eels)_

"George – _Harry_!"

George took a quick look over to Fred, where he was busy hitting a Bludger over and over again to the Slytherin players, trying to protect the Chasers. George quickly swerved his broom to the right, where Harry was calmly (at least that's what it looked like) dodging this other persistent Bludger that Marcus Flint kept throwing at him.

"Hold on, Harry!" yelled George, then BAM! He cut across Flint, hit the Bludger back to Bole, who was now bumping repeatedly into Alicia (who was holding the Quaffle) to make her fall. George heard both Bole and Flint curse, prompting him to exchange a smirk with Harry. Harry then went on searching for the Snitch, while he flied back to look out for other players.

He wasn't going to lie, he really did love being on the field. There's such an extraordinary amount of energy from the players, from the crowd, everyone set on the same goal – to win this game. This game that had steadily nurtured the competitive streak in him, this game that had always forced him to give it his all, this game that could easily give him the most euphoric feeling or the most crushing blow.

Other than the game itself, there was also the fact that he could always just be himself whenever he's flying. The feel of the wind grazing his cheeks and blowing his hair – there's nothing quite like it, he reckoned. He could always get away from everything, if only for a few minutes: his fears, his insecurities, his frustrations…

George was one half of the comedic duo with Fred, that much he knew. He was a practical joker, one half of the life of the party, that much he realised and bloody proud of it. What people didn't get to see that often is his quieter side, the one that simply likes to observe people and marvel at the way they interact with each other.

"GEORGE! _GEORGE_! HARRY GOT THE SNITCH!"

Angelina's voice hurtled him out of his musings, which was now rapidly filled with many whirling emotions: shock, disbelief, complete ecstasy. THEY WON THE CUP. The stadium was in uproar, he could barely hear himself shouting hoarsely as they all descended to entangle Harry in a giant hug. Yeah, nothing really felt quite like _this_. George hoped, as he ruffled Harry's hair, grinning widely as he did so, that this moment would last forever. He definitely wouldn't mind living this moment all over again.

He was still grinning widely until he caught sight of Oliver and Katie in the middle of a congratulatory hug. He stared apprehensively at them for a while, during which Oliver seemed to be happily saying a few words to her as they let go and Katie was left staring at his retreating back with that… _pathetic smile_, concluded George, his mood changing drastically from feeling jubilant to being annoyed.

_Get a grip, _he thought as he walked back to the changing room, _we've been over this. Why do I feel like bloody murder every time I see Katie smiling like that? It's that irritating fly all over again, _he went on as he put his broom against his locker, _what the bloody hell is this?_

"I saw it, I saw it!" said Fred suddenly, coming up to him as he removed his pads.

"What?" asked George, looking up at him with mild curiosity. Fred wasn't exactly the attentive type, so whenever he did notice something, it always wound up to be interesting.

"You," he answered cryptically.

"Me… doing what?" George was fully interested now, he didn't remember doing anything out of the ordinary lately.

"Oh, come on, George," whispered Fred excitedly, "you were glaring daggers to a certain brunette over there."

He felt his irritation bubbling up when he followed his twin brother's thumb, which was directed at Katie.

"I wasn't," he mumbled, more annoyed than he was already. Even without looking, he could tell Fred was smirking with that knowing look on his face. He sat down on the bench and huffed heavily.

To his surprise, Fred didn't say anything further. He bumped his shoulder and only said, "Don't worry, mate. I won't tell."

And then he left, leaving George feeling more confused than ever. He rolled his eyes, stood up and started making his way quickly towards the shower.

On his way out of the changing room, he was still thinking about the meaning of Fred's words, scratching his head out of frustration as he did so. _There's just something about Katie, _he resumed his line of thoughts, _something that makes me act weirdly. But what is it? She's a normal girl, it's not like -_

"OW!"

A sharp, fleeting pain rested on him for a few seconds when he realized that he wasn't the only one making that sound. He opened his eyes and saw the last person he wanted to see right now: Katie, who currently had her hand on her forehead, scrunching her eyes shut.

"Sorry, are you – " she had started to say, but quickly retracted when she saw him, "oh, it's just you. Never mind then."

"How dare you!" George could feel his mouth widening in spite of himself. "I could be horribly injured here, thanks to your Clumsy Highness Who Never Looks Where She Walks!"

"Excuse me," she said indignantly, putting both hands on her hips, "I wasn't the one daydreaming now, was I?"

She grinned up at him now and it made him wonder briefly when she had started to look so small.

"I was just recalling the game," he said, blushing slightly at her calling him out so quickly. "But hey," he said hastily, trying to recover, "I wasn't the one desperately hoping to run into a handsome, dazzling Weasley, either."

He winked at her for added effect, to which she merely responded by staring incredulously at him.

"You're delusional, George," she said finally, shaking her head.

That, and the giggle that followed soon after, made George feel so much better as he laughed along with her. Whatever that feeling was, he could think it over another day. It felt just great being here.


	7. Time, Only Time

VII. Time, Only Time

_Time together is just never quite enough_

_When you and I are alone, I've never felt so at home_

_What will it take to make or break this hint of love?_

_We need time, only time_

_The Saltwater Room (Owl City)_

This is weird. This is really weird.

It's been almost a year since that incident with George happened, and normally she wouldn't even think about it anymore but things happened since then… or not, in this case, and that's exactly what makes it frustrating.

Despite her initial brilliant deduction that George had only saved her out of habit and that she was only embarrassed because he had to look out for her outside the field, things remained as awkward as ever. At first she ignored it and tried to not let it bother her, but it did and they were clearly not getting over this any time soon. Save that last time after winning the Quidditch Cup, they haven't really had a proper conversation (and even then she was trying her hardest to act normally, something she thought she failed at horribly – hopefully George didn't notice anything).

These days, whenever they bumped into each other again in the Great Hall or the Common Room, they wouldn't speak directly to each other. George still teased her about her crush on Oliver (speaking of Oliver, she couldn't help but grin whenever she thought of that hug they shared after the match… anyway, moving on) but whenever he did, he would always be doing it because Fred started it.

_Or maybe I'm reading way too much into this, _thought Katie for the umpteenth time that day. _Maybe I'm the only one who thinks it's weird while he doesn't even care. After all, we did talk normally after the match…_

If that's true, then she's the one making it weird for them and she couldn't be more annoyed about that. She finally resolved to just act as usual the next time she sees him. If she thought about it thoroughly, she felt more embarrassed than anything else, because she managed to look like a damsel in distress in front of everyone, and she really didn't want to be known henceforth as "that-lucky-girl-who-was-saved-yet-again-by-the-rogue-and-handsome-Weasley-twin" (wait, did she just say _handsome_?)

Anyway, if she keeps this cannot-look-you-in-the-eyes-I'm-busy-looking-at-the-floor thing she's been doing lately, he'll think she has permanent stomach problems.

Everyone was still on a high about their team winning the Quidditch Cup and Katie, being a part of the team, was one of them. This is definitely one of her biggest accomplishments so far, and she couldn't be more proud of herself and her team. Nothing should spoil this moment, not even… whatever this thing was between her and George. This non-existent thing, to be exact. Enough is enough.

As she made her way to the Fat Lady's portrait to look for George, she saw Oliver approaching out of the corner of her eyes and suddenly, it was like her feet were glued to the floor. Memories of their last conversation flooded through her mind as she started to feel the usual symptoms of anyone being stupidly, ridiculously infatuated with someone else: her face started to burn, her heart started to beat faster, a silly smile started to form on her lips – good gracious, she hated not being able to control herself.

"Hey, Katie," said Oliver, flashing that confident grin she's come to memorise in her sleep. (_What? You have no right to judge!_) "So, have you thought about it?"

"Er," she trailed off, looking at her shoes, unsure of what to say next. She braved a chance to look up at him again, and she felt her resolve crumble. She took a deep breath and finally said, "Sorry, Oliver. I don't think I can do it."

"Fair enough," he said, looking down at her and giving her a good-natured smile. "It was worth a try, anyway."

"Hey ho, Miss Bell," a voice suddenly interrupted before she had the opportunity to thank him. "Mr. Wood. Care to try our newest product?"

Oliver turned around to face George, whose hands were now brandishing some sort of dish towards them. He looked cautiously at it, then at both twins and said, "No, thanks, George. I, er – have to go to the library."

And with that, he sprinted off without looking back even once.

"Pfft, he didn't even bother to look at it properly," lamented Fred.

"Wonder why you think that is?" asked Katie, turning round to fully face the boys for the first time since they interrupted her conversation with Oliver, smirking as she did so.

"Why don't you tell us, Kate?" Fred batted his eyelashes playfully and she thought she saw him cast a look at his brother for a split second. His attention right now was back on her, though.

She rolled her eyes as she felt a smile forming slowly on her face. She couldn't help it. It's true that she hated them when she was little because she thought they were mean boys, but now they made her laugh like no one else can. It's funny how getting to know a person can do that to you.

She decided to play along and asked the one question that none of them ever thought would come from her lips.

"So," she asked, eyeing the dish with interest, "what is it?"

She was met with a slightly stunned silence from both of them. Then they looked at her, wearing matching maniacal grins. (_She wondered if she did the right thing, after all._)

"Our first customer of the day!" exclaimed Fred, pumping his free fist into the air. "Right, so what this does is - "

"I don't want to try it," warned Katie, holding up her hand, "I just want to know what it is and what you're going to do with it and I wonder if I can join in."

She said this all in one breath and was met once again with incredulous expressions from the twins.

"Alright, yeah!" exclaimed Fred suddenly, pumping his free fist in the air, "Look who has finally seen the light and is interested in my roguish good looks – "

"_Not _exactly what I said, Fred."

" – and has praised time and time again my finesse for – "

"He's going to go on for a while, isn't he?" Katie sighed and looked around at George, who was now smirking at her and said, "Hey, you asked for it. Also, I guess this means you have fallen for _my _charms as well, seeing as we look the same and whatnot."

She rolled her eyes again and said, without thinking, "Yes, very much so, George."

"Aha! I knew it," said George triumphantly, "I've seen the way you look at me."

"Silly me," retorted Katie, suddenly feeling jubilant and felt in higher spirits than she'd been a few minutes ago, "I should've been more discreet with my affections."

She completed this with a curtsey, making George snort and instantly follow her lead by making a show of taking a bow in front of her.

"Why, do not worry your pretty little head," he said with an air of grandeur, "I, for one, encourage you to show me your affections, every day. It will undoubtedly make you suffer to do otherwise."

She couldn't help it. She started giggling, then laughed as he attempted to do a pirouette (and failed). He laughed along with her and all felt right in the world. The awkwardness was gone and from then on, she knew they would be fine.

PS: Sorry this took so long! I hope I'm back on track this time. I am brimming with ideas! Also, before you ask: yes, I will go back to Oliver and Katie's conversation. It will be explained. It's not over yet and George will find out soon enough.

One more thing: sorry for the multiple uploads of this chapter alone! Quite frankly it's been a while and I'm a little confused. Hope you've enjoyed this one!


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